


The Rest of the Family

by Enonem



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Dysfunctional Family, Family Fluff, First Day of School, Gen, Hogwarts, Hogwarts House Sorting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-26
Updated: 2017-07-26
Packaged: 2018-12-07 11:28:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11622585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Enonem/pseuds/Enonem
Summary: Andromeda worries about her family. Mostly about little Sirius on his first days at Hogwarts.





	The Rest of the Family

Andromeda chewed on her lip as she watched the First Years file in the Great Hall after McGonagall. Her eyes scanned the small crowd until she spotted her cousin.  
Little Sirius kept his gaze fixed on the floor while the kids around him looked around the Hall in wonder. He looked pale and was taking big slow breaths in an obvious attempt to steady himself. Every now and then he would throw a nervous glance at the messy-haired boy next to him.  
Andromeda sighed. After six years in Slytherin and all the baggage that came with it, she had long realised that Houses did not matter all that much. Students shaped themselves after their House about as much as they were naturally predisposed to their values.  
She had tried to explain the concept to Sirius, but without success. Ironically, her cousin clung to his fear of Slytherin and of becoming like the rest of the family with all the stubbornness typical of a Black.  
She glanced next to her at her sister. Narcissa was observing Sirius with her eyebrows slightly raised and her mouth pressed in a line. It was the look of someone who disapproves of what they see and hopes, without much conviction, that it will improve quickly.  
Andromeda repressed a grimace, it was exactly the look Bellatrix always gave the boy.  
Narcissa turned towards her sister and whispered "Why is he staring at the floor? He should be standing tall and proud, as befits the heir of the House of Black!"  
Before Andromeda could reply, their attention was called away as McGonagall read out "Black, Sirius."  
Sirius looked up and walked towards McGonagall. All of a sudden he was not looking like he was on his way to the gallows anymore. Instead, he strode over as a man on his way to a fight.  
And Andromeda realised what was going to happen.  
The Sorting Hat had been on Sirius' head for maybe two whole seconds before it cried out "Gryffindor!"  
Sirius got up beaming and hurried towards the cheering Gryffindor table. Andromeda thought she saw some of the older students exchange glances, but Sirius did not seem to notice. He did not turn to look behind him at the Slytherin table, though whether out of dismissal or fear Andromeda did not know.  
She did know, however, that it was fear that was keeping her from looking at her sister. Narcissa's silence was enough.  
Instead she looked up at the teachers' table. McGonagall was busy with the rest of the Sorting, but Slughorn seemed slightly disappointed.  
Repressing a smile, Andromeda joined the rest of her table in welcoming the first Slytherin.

Dinner went by with nothing more dramatic than Narcissa's slightly ominous silence. Sirius was chatting with the messy haired boy without a care in the world.  
At one point he did turn towards her table. Andromeda was quick to give him an encouraging smile as soon as their eyes met. Sirius smiled back and, apparently satisfied, turned his back on the Slytherins once more.  
Andromeda looked at him in some bemusement. Personally, she had been hoping he would end up in Ravenclaw. That would have been as good a compromise as anyone could hope for. His parents would not have been happy with him, but then they never were. At least there was only so much they could complain about having a clever son, even if he had broken the family tradition. Having a Gryffindor son was going to get Aunt Walburga to scream her head off for months.  
But Sirius was happy and Andromeda could not find it in her to worry about tomorrow when she saw her dear cousin laugh.  
She approached him briefly as they all stood up to go to their dormitories. Some of the kids around him gasped when they saw her coming towards them, but Sirius shouted "Dromeda!" and ran to hug her.  
Andromeda laughed as she ruffled his hair. "Congratulations, cuz! Happy?"  
Sirius beamed up at her. "Yes! I was worried all day, but it turned out alright, didn't it?"  
"I guess it did. I'm happy for you, Sirius."  
Sirius' smile turned into a grimace. "What do you think-"  
"I said First Years follow me! That means you too, Black!"  
The Gryffindor prefect walked over to marshal Sirius back in line before Andromeda could say anything to reassure him. She was left with the only option to smile at him as he walked away.

When mail arrived the following morning, Andromeda scanned the feathered mass for familiar owls. She tensed up for a moment when she saw her mother's owl, but it was just bringing Narcissa her usual first day of school gifts (neither herself nor Bellatrix had ever been spoiled like this; their mother had a definite soft spot for her youngest). Sirius did not receive any letters.  
Andromeda did not have a chance to talk to Sirius all day, caught in the stressful chaos of the first day of lessons, made all the worse by the teachers' apparently unanimous decision that, since NEWTs were more important than OWLs, Seventh Year students needed more fear put into them. By dinner she was too exhausted to worry about her cousin's imminent troubles, which she only remembered when she noticed Narcissa throwing frequent glances at the Gryffindor table, looking distinctly pleased with herself.

The following morning Andromeda scanned through the owls again and her blood froze when she saw landing in front of Sirius, not his parents' bird, but Bellatrix' long-eared owl.  
She stormed over to her sister, pushed Malfoy aside as she sat between them and rounded on Narcissa.  
"Tell me you didn't write to Bellatrix about Sirius being Sorted into Gryffindor!" she hissed through her teeth.  
Narcissa held her gaze, unimpressed. "And why should I not inform my sister of family news?"  
"You know perfectly well why not, Cissy! Couldn't you just leave the boy alone? He's going to have enough to deal with as it is!"  
"And _you_ know he's never had any problem standing up to his parents. I just thought a firmer hand would be more effective."  
"And do what, exactly? Unsort him?"  
Narcissa simply glared at her.  
Andromeda let out an exhasperated sound and stalked off across the room to talk to Sirius. What she would tell him she didn't know yet.  
But Sirius was no longer sitting at his table. Muttering a curse under her breath, Andromeda hurried to the Entrance Hall followed by the suspicious eyes of a good section of the Great Hall.  
She only had about fifteen minutes before the start of lessons and she looked around frantically, wondering where Sirius might have gone.  
"Alright, where would I go if I were an eleven year old who didn't know the castle well yet and had just received a letter from my maniac, aspiring Death Eater cousin?"  
She took off towards the grounds and immediately saw Sirius running full pelt towards the lake with something white clutched in his hand.  
Cursing again, Andromeda ran after him.  
When she caught up, Sirius was standing on the lake shore. He balled up the letter in his hands and threw it into the lake.  
" _Accio letter!_ "  
The parchment changed direction before it hit the water and flew into Andromeda's hand.  
Sirius spun towards her, his face wet with tears and his eyes burning with anger.  
"I have learned long ago," said Andromeda, as calmly as she could through her short breath. "That the only way to deal with my sister, if there is any, is through calm and reasoned argument."  
Sirius raised his eyebrows in skepticism.  
Andromeda grinned at him. "It drives her mad. So I suggest you keep this letter as evidence."  
Sirius smiled faintly but did not take back the letter Andromeda was offering. "You can read it," he said.  
Andromeda opened up the scrunched up parchment. The message was not long, but got its point across well.

_Sirius,_  
_I see your spite and ungratefulness have been confirmed even by the ancient magic of Hogwarts._  
_On your head be it, little cousin. You will soon regret your rebel games, this is a time for loyalty.  
I suspect your father will disown you soon, if he hasn't already._

_Eagerly waiting for the day I won't have to call you cousin anymore,  
Bellatrix_

Andromeda had to close her eyes and count to ten after she finished reading. She had given up on her sister some time ago, but it still hurt.  
Sirius was looking out at the lake. Pretending that he was not affected, despite the fact that his shoulders were shaking with the effort to hold back tears.  
"Wow," said Andromeda in a casual tone. "What a waste of parchment."  
She cocked an eyebrow at Sirius, who gave a forced grin as he took the letter back and shoved it unceremoniously in his pocket.  
"Come on," she said. "Let's get back inside. It's only your second day, too soon to start getting late to class. You should give it at least a week."  
This time Sirius actually laughed. A little.  
But he was fidgeting all the way to the castle. Just before they reached the entrance he finally opened his mouth, but Andromeda interrupted him.  
"She's not worth it, Sirius. Don't give her words thought or her opinion weight."  
"But..." Sirius squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath in. "She's family!" He blurted.  
Something shifted painfully inside Andromeda's chest as she looked down at him.  
"No, Sirius," she whispered eventually. " _She_ is not our family."  
Sirius looked up at her uncertainly. Andromeda shook her head.  
"Sirius? You alright, mate?"  
The boy with the messy hair had appeared in the doorway and was giving Andromeda a distinctly hostile look. Andromeda smiled at him.  
"Why don't you introduce me to your friend, Sirius?"  
"Oh. Right! James, this is my cousin Andromeda. Dromeda, this is James Potter."  
"Hi, James!" Andromeda kept smiling at the boy but his expression did not soften. Andromeda felt strangely fond of the boy. If Sirius had a friend like this to look out for him, he would be fine.  
"Your cousin, uh?" James' eyes did not leave Andromeda, who had to fight not to grin.  
"Nah, she's alright," said Sirius and Andromeda felt herself relax hearing the overconfident tone creep back into his voice. Children heal quickly, she mused.  
That seemed to be enough for James, who said "oh, ok then" and shook Andromeda's hand.  
"It's very nice to meet you, James, but now the two of you should really rush to class." She drew herself up and tapped on her prefect badge, winking at them.  
Sirius gasped in mock horror. "Oh no! Run!" He yelled and the two boys sprinted down the corridor.  
Andromeda smiled until after the echo of their laughter died. A movement to her right showed her Narcissa walking by with one of her friends. She glanced significantly from Andromeda to the corridor in which Sirius and James had just disappeared, then shook her head and walked away.  
Andromeda was left alone in the empty Entrance Hall, looking after her family.  
She was going to have a lot of work to do in her final year at Hogwarts.

**Author's Note:**

> I got a little creative/fibbed with the ages for the Black sisters since we don't have much information. Also I don't know how quickly after leaving Hogwarts Bella joined Voldemort's ranks. I left it at "not yet but soon". Otherwise it would have made it all a bit darker than intended.


End file.
